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PTCC Update

27 November 2009

Dear Friends,

I hope that you had a very happy Thanksgiving!

This Update begins with a disclaimer that I will use for all future discussions
of today’s topic.

In the five years since the PTCC was established I have always carefully
avoided any partisan bias and always attempt to call the situation as
I see it regardless of the politics involved. I firmly believe that the
property tax crisis has been caused by the inaction of Republicans and
Democrats alike and that it will require committed lawmakers from both
parties to permanently solve the problem. Please keep this in mind as
you read today’s Update.

The PTCC today is announcing its endorsement of State Representative
Sam Rohrer for Governor of Pennsylvania.

For many years Representative Rohrer has worked tirelessly for the total
elimination of school property taxes and a restructuring of Pennsylvania’s
broken education finance system. Along the way he has been thwarted by
shameful partisan politics, callous special interests, and the appalling
cowardice of many self-serving lawmakers who do not have the political
will to support such sweeping legislation.

On Tuesday, November 17, Representative Rohrer announced his candidacy
for Governor of Pennsylvania. During his announcement address Sam emphasized
that school property tax elimination will be one of the five main planks
of his campaign platform and a priority of his administration.

From the standpoint of school property tax elimination we could not have
received better news. As Governor, Sam Rohrer will be in a position to
advance the education finance reform agenda in a manner that to this point
has been impossible. His election as Governor would hugely increase the
likelihood of school property tax elimination in a way that we previously
could have only imagined.

Of the three Republicans and five Democrats who have announced their
candidacy for Governor, Representative Rohrer has been the ONLY one to
make this commitment. Five candidates have not mentioned the issue in
any manner whatsoever, while the remaining two have used the tired, meaningless,
nonspecific terms “property tax reform” and “cut property
taxes” in their campaign.

Through his ongoing efforts, Representative Rohrer has proven that he
truly understands the property tax crisis for what it is: A moral issue
that must be resolved to free Pennsylvania homeowners from oppressive
property taxes and not a cynical political ploy to be used to win elections.

Because of the PTCC’s singular focus on education finance reform,
the only factors I will consider for this election are an unequivocal
public commitment to eliminate school property taxes and a definitive
plan to do so - that will be my litmus test for any candidate for Governor
in 2010. Representative Rohrer has passed that test.

I believe that the time has come to forget labels like Democrat and Republican,
red and blue, conservative and liberal, left and right. Self-centered
politicians of all stripes have demonstrated their unwillingness to be
responsive to their constituents’ desires, preferring instead to
take the easy road and do what is politically expedient. It is time to
end this charade by electing those people who are attuned to and sympathetic
to our needs, regardless of party, if we are to regain control of the
government that is rightfully ours. I hope that you feel as I do on this
issue.

Representative Rohrer’s candidacy has not been sanctioned by those
political party power brokers who choose our candidates for us and who
are concerned only about amassing power and winning and losing. For Sam
to succeed it will take a bottom-up grassroots groundswell of support
to accomplish the task of electing a Governor whose primary concern is
the will of the people who elect him to office. With our efforts –
the power of the people - we can demonstrate to the uncaring political
bosses that we will no longer be content with candidates who are forced
upon us by those who have little interest in our well-being. We will,
instead, show them that we will elect those who will truly work for the
people and not for the party establishment.

During the years of effort I have spent advocating for education funding
reform and school property tax elimination I have come to know Representative
Rohrer very well and I respect him greatly. I feel privileged to have
had the opportunity to work with him on this vital issue and sincerely
believe that he is an honorable and principled man of tremendous integrity
who will do whatever he promises for the citizens of Pennsylvania.

I am asking you today to please strongly consider supporting Representative
Rohrer’s candidacy, regardless of your political preference, to
help achieve our goal of school property tax elimination. This is a non-partisan
request based entirely on advancing the cause we support and is not based
in any manner on political philosophy or affiliation. During all of the
years that we have been working toward this goal we have never had a better
opportunity to reach our objective. Your help is urgently needed if we
are to succeed.

You can read more about Representative Rohrer’s goals on his campaign
website here.

In future PTCC Updates I’ll have specific suggestions on what you
can do to support Representative Rohrer and the battle for school property
tax elimination.

You can offer comments and discuss today’s update on the PTCC blog
site here or on the new
PTCC Facebook
page – simply search for “PTCC” when you’re
logged on to Facebook and become a friend. We’d like to hear your
thoughts.

Please download the PDF file of this webpage
and forward it to everyone you know to help spread the word and advance
the cause.

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One more note for our friends in the Northeast: Representative
Rohrer will be holding a town hall meeting on Thursday, December 10, at
6:30 PM at the Clarks Summit Volunteer Fire Department, 321 Bedford Street,
Clarks Summit. Please be there to meet Sam, hear about his “Principles
to Renew Pennsylvania”, and show your support! There will be more
of these meetings in the future throughout the state and the PTCC will
keep you up-to-date on locations and times.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

That’s it for today. My best wishes and my gratitude go out to
all PTCC supporters and subscribers. Thank you very much for all of your
help.